Taylor Do it Centers opens first Express location

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Taylor Do it Centers, a chain of nine Do it Best hardware stores in Virginia and North Carolina, has opened its first “Express” location in Virginia Beach, Va.

Aimed at weekend projects and yard maintenance, Taylor “Do it Express” is 4,500 square feet, about one-third the size of the average Taylor Do it Center. The store, which opened July 14, is in a densely populated area with many hi-rise condominiums.

“I saw this as an opportunity to do a smaller, high-margin store with no building materials -- just basic hardware and lawn and garden, which are our strengths,” said Joe Taylor, president and CEO of Taylor Do it Centers, in an interview with Home Channel News. “It’s kind of like a 7-11 convenience store.”

Whereas a typical Taylor Do it Center has seven to nine employees on the floor at any given time, the Express format has three or four. And while the larger stores are all at least 3.5 to 4 miles from the closest big box, Express stores can be within a two-mile radius, Taylor said.

“If this is successful, we’ll go back into our region and fill in where we see opportunities in dense, higher-income areas,” he said.